It really is all go... This week I've felt like I haven't had time to... well... break wind, never mind train. However, I have still managed to get out there for the runs and my weekly swim, so rest assured, I'm not falling behind.
The reason for all of this chaos? Well, as if we haven't got enough on at the moment, what with my eldest son starting school, sustaining both of our jobs and all the other stuff we do, we've decided to move house. This, of course, means selling our own house, which needs redecorating in order to make it appealing to buyers in the current market; so this week, I've been mainly painting the kitchen. I've been having to do it in stages because I've got my youngest son at home with me all day. So when he's awake in the day, I can only spend a very short time decorating and I can only paint things which are out of his reach (i.e. ceilings, and the tops of walls). All of the rest (i.e. the stuff within his reach) is having to be done after both the kids are in bed. I've got to say, however, you can really feel your muscles after a session painting a ceiling. It's got to be good for you. Who needs a gym?
It's not just the practical stuff though, it's the stress involved. My head is just buzzing with the amount we've got to do. Every room I enter in the house requires something doing to it to make it more presentable and I don't even want to think about the twelve years' worth of accumulated crap we've got stuffed in cupboards and in the loft (the loft! AAAAGGH!!) which we are going to have to sift through, either discard, or pack and move.
This, however, is where going for a run or for a swim comes into its own. Surely, there can be no better stress-buster than going out and running so far that you can't feel anything anymore. After a few miles I'm not even thinking anymore; I'm just running. All I can feel is the ache in my legs. It's a relief, I have to tell you. It's a relief to have somewhere to be able to escape from what's going on inside my head.
So I've been training harder than ever; and I've been working harder than ever on the fundraising too. At the end of last week I finally got the T-shirts I'd ordered from the (rubbish) print shop. With this in view, I made an appointment to call into the fundraising office of the Weston Park Hospital to have some photographs taken for them to place on their website. The photos (featuring my T-shirts) are at the top of the page. As you can see, thankfully, the print shop obviously haven't been reading this blog, as they have resisted the urge to write something obscene on the back of my T-shirt. They almost look quite professional, apart from the fact that they promised they'd print the Weston Park Hospital Cancer Charity logo on a white background to make it stand out (they didn't) and also the "r" in "Great North Swim" is a bit wonky when you look at it close up. Still, at least I've got it now. There were also some pictures of my front but I have to admit I got a shock when I looked at them. Do I really look that old? I know I feel it, but that's another story. Needless to say, I have not included them here or on any of the other websites I use. I asked my husband if I really did look that old. He (perhaps erroneously) muttered something about me looking quite young in the pictures. How old do I look without the intervention of a camera? I don't even want to think about that.
Moving swiftly on, the print shop produced another T-shirt for me too, in flourescent green (to make sure I can be seen out on these dark winter nights). It reads "Sponsor me to run the greats in support of the Weston Park Hospital Cancer Charity". If you see an elderly lady out stumbling along in the dark in a flourescent green T-shirt bearing these words, it's probably me. My website is on the back of said T-shirt - make sure you take a note of it and sponsor me.
I've had a few more visitors to my justgiving web page, including sponsorship from someone I've never even met before. He contacted me via facebook and left an extremely touching message about how he had heard that I was raising money for cancer and would he be able to sponsor me because his own mum was dying of a carcinoid tumour. His email moved me to tears. I was amazed and touched by his generosity for supporting me and it gave me such a boost. It was the best stress-buster ever and the best motivation to persevere with the training, even though time, as always, is desperately short.
I've had a few more visitors to my justgiving web page, including sponsorship from someone I've never even met before. He contacted me via facebook and left an extremely touching message about how he had heard that I was raising money for cancer and would he be able to sponsor me because his own mum was dying of a carcinoid tumour. His email moved me to tears. I was amazed and touched by his generosity for supporting me and it gave me such a boost. It was the best stress-buster ever and the best motivation to persevere with the training, even though time, as always, is desperately short.
I am now nearly 10% of the way there to raising my target of £3k. I know it sounds a bit rubbish, but I haven't even started yet. The next few months is going to see me doing some real pestering for sponsorship...
Don't forget, you can sponsor me too. Whether you know me or not, if your life has been touched by cancer, perhaps you'd like to help raise money towards research into treatments of the disease. You can sponsor me now at http://www.justgiving.com/valderbyshire
I would stay and write more, but I've got the kitchen wall to paint...
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